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NPR's Elizabeth Arnold reports that the Senate this week took up a 13 billion dollar spending recision bill. The House has passed a bill of 17 Billion. Arnold reports on the differences between the bills and that President Clinton says he will veto the House version.

Daniel talks with Harold Wonkle - deputy assistant director of the FBI's Criminal Investigations Division about the Russian mafia. Recently the FBI opened up an office in Moscow in order to work more closely with the Russian police in combatting Russian criminals whose efforts often extend into the United States. Wonkle says the Russian mafia is very sophisticated and is involved in everything from moneylaundering to medical fraud.

The Aum Shinrykio sect is now the principal suspect in the Tokyo subway gassing last Monday. Over the past few days Japanese police have confiscated huge amounts of chemical compounds from their headquaters. But as Anne Garrels reports from Moscow the sect also has a large following in Russia - almost three times as many members as in Japan. But some of them are less willing than others.

Daniel talks to Ariel Bloch and Chana Bloch, who have retranslated one of the books of the Bible, the Song of Songs. Traditionally read during the Jewish festival of Passover, it is a passionate love poem that takes place during the spring.

On this April Fools Day, NPR science reporter Joe Palca has a story about a body of water called the The Firth of Forth, which runs through the Scottish city of Edinburgh, and a plan to use high-tech magnets to part the waters, the better to handle rush-hour traffic with.

Daniel talks to human rights activist Harry Wu, who was held by the Chinese government for 66 days and released during the past week. Wu says that while he was detained, he kept a secret diary in the margins of his dictionary, using the page numbers as a code for the date. He says that he loves China and will continue to return there.

The Senate is planning to vote on welfare reform next Tuesday, and today, President Clinton, Bob Dole and Newt Gingrich all appeared on radio to stake out their positions. Clinton expressed his support for Senate progress on the plan, although he warned that if conservative voices prevail and the Congress walks away from bipartisan progress, welfare reform will die. Dole and Gingrich predicted welfare reform would pass.

Maureen Meehan (f) reports on the reaction in Hebrun to today's agreement between PLO and Israeli leaders, expanding Palestinian self rule in the West Bank.

Daniel talks to Frank Keith, spokesperson for the IRS, and Greg Holloway of the General Accounting Office, about a GAO study that concludes that the IRS' internal bookkeeping system is so bad that it is virtually impossible to audit them. Keith says that the IRS deals with more recipts that the top 30 Fortune 500 companies put together with computer systems designed in the 60s, and that, given their present system, it is impossible to provide auditors with the information they need.

Daniel talks with Shannon Faulkner, who's back home today in Powdersville, South Carolina, after quitting the Citadel. Shannon made history last week by being the first female to be admitted to the all-male military college. Shannon says she dropped out for health reasons; the emotional stress of the last two years finally caught up with her.

Daniel talks to Jay Maser, President of the Union of Needle, Trades Industrial and Textile Employees about the poor conditions workers face in many garment manufacturing plants in the U.S. Many of these shops use legal and illegal immigrants and pay them much less than minimum wages. They have often been compared to slave labor because of the low pay and poor working conditions. Maser says more government enforcement is needed and calls on retailers to play a bigger role in improving conditions for these workers.

up Radios - Daniel talks to Trevor Baylis, the designer of the windup radio. The radio will initially be used by aid agencies in remote areas such as Rwanda and Sarajevo, where people do not have access to batteries because of expense and availability. Owners of the radio will only need to wind it up for 20 seconds and it will play for 40 minutes. This new invention is being manufactured by disabled people in South Africa. Bayliss says demand for the radio is high worldwide.

NPR's Jon Greenberg reports that early this morning the Senate Finance Committee approved the Republican's plan to overhaul medicare and medicaid. The legislation now goes to the Senate floor. The plan calls for senior citizens to pay more in medicare premiums and deductions, and also lets states use block grant to run medicaid, which serves poor women and children and elderly in nursing homes. The Republicans say their plan would reap billions of dollars in savings, thereby saving medicare. President Clinton today said the Republican plan is ill-considered and goes too far.

NPR's Lynn Neary reports that alien life forms are invading the nation's harbors and coastal waterways as a result of ballast water discharges from visiting ships.

Daniel talks to Andy Pasztor, author of the book, "When the Pentagon was for Sale," about corruption in the Pentagon during the Regan presidency. He describes Pentagon officials who routinely directed defense contracts to their friends and took kickbacks for inside information about possible defense contracts.

Daniel visits Los Angeles County's General Hospital. A billion dollar budget shortfall will force the county later this month to layoff thousands of health care providers. The hospital is the largest public hospital in the nation and hundreds of thousands of people without health insurance will end up with no place to go.

The United Nations and NATO have given the Bosnian Serbs a Monday deadline for pulling their heavy weapons back from Sarajevo or face renewed military attacks. NPR's John Nielsen reports.

Kim Kokich reports

Jacki talks to Marshall Chapman about her new CD "It's About Time..." (Margaritaville Records) which was recorded live at the Tennessee State Prison for Women. Chapman says that she was nervous about performing at the prison, but the inmates responded enthusiastically to the concert.

NPR's Ann Garrels reports from Moscow that four years after the failed coup against Mikhail Gorbachev, Russians are disillusioned, and it turns out that rebuilding a cathedral is easier than building democracy.

Daniel talks to Natalie Angier, author of "The Beauty of the Beastly." She says that the phrase "busy as a bee" is a misstatement, because most of the time, bees are resting.

Part two of our piece about race relations in southwest Louisiana, and the Justice Department's civil rights lawsuit against a cajun dance hall called La Poussiere.

Daniel talks with the authors of "Modus Operandi: A Writer's Guide to How Criminals Work." Mauro Corvasce and Joseph Paglino are police detectives in New Jersey. They say many of the criminal acts portrayed on TV and in novels are inaccurate or incomplete.

Daniel speaks with NPR's Lynn Neary about the Pope's visit to the United States this week. During his trip, which included appearances in New Jersey, New York, and Baltimore, the Pope appealed to Americans to be sensitive to the needs of the poor and sickly, and to young people to devote their lives to the church by becoming priests and nuns.